Duckhorn's Vineyard for $10?

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Have you ever stumbled upon a wine that makes you do a double-take at the price tag? That's exactly what happened when I discovered the Trader Joe's Reserve Huichica Hills Vineyard Carneros Napa Chardonnay 2023 – a $9.99 bottle sourced from the same prestigious vineyard where Duckhorn produces their $65 Chardonnays.

This remarkable find represents the fascinating behind-the-scenes reality of today's wine market. The Huichica Hills Vineyard sits in Carneros, that coveted region straddling Napa and Sonoma where cool breezes from San Pablo Bay create perfect conditions for Chardonnay. When I tasted this wine, the quality was immediately apparent – medium to full-bodied with beautifully integrated oak providing subtle vanilla notes without overwhelming the fruit. The flavor profile showcases classic Carneros characteristics: vibrant lemon and apple, hints of Anjou pear, white stone fruits like nectarine, and even subtle tropical notes reminiscent of coconut milk. Most impressively, it delivers the lengthy finish typically reserved for wines at much higher price points.

The story behind this bottle reflects the current wine industry downturn, with consumption dropping approximately 10% in 2024. These market conditions have disrupted normal supply chains, creating situations where premium fruit originally destined for high-end bottlings becomes available for opportunistic projects. Produced by Plata Wine Partners (under their Ashford Court label), a company controlling some 20,000 acres of California vineyards, this wine demonstrates what can happen when quality fruit meets skilled winemaking, regardless of the price point. If you appreciate Chardonnay with balanced acidity, complex flavors, and remarkable value, don't walk – run to Trader Joe's before this exceptional bargain disappears from shelves.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hey, domain Dave CheapWineFightercom, welcome.
Today we've got an interestingTrader Joe's a new one.
This is the first time I saw itin Trader Joe's.
It's the Trader Joe's ReserveWine.
It's the I don't know thepronunciation.
It's a Huchica HillsH-U-I-C-H-I-C-A Hills Vineyard,

(00:22):
canaros N, napa, chardonnay 2023.
Now they just came out with aCanaros and this is a Chardonnay
.
They just came out with aCanaros Chardonnay in November,
in time for the holidays.
But this is completely differentbottling and what's interesting
about this one is Kuchika HillsVineyard is Duckhorn's Canaros

(00:47):
Vineyard, the big Napa producer.
They do Merlots and that typeof thing and then but they have,
this is from their vineyard.
Canaros is in both Sonoma andNapa, but it's mostly in Napa
and it is above the northernportion of the San Pablo Bay,

(01:08):
which is east of Oakland, and itgets these cool breezes from
the bay which is a part of youknow, even though it's cut off a
little bit from the PacificOcean, it still has the cool
temperatures of the water andthe winds and that type of thing
the cool temperatures of thewater and the winds and that
type of thing, which is why SanFrancisco and Oakland are cold,

(01:32):
because you've got Pacific wateron both sides of them and it's
a really elite place for bothPinot Noir and Chardonnay.
This is a $9.99 bottle of awine that's from Duckhorn's
Vineyard.
I mean, typically speaking,when you get a vineyard named on
the label that costs some bucksto put it there, I mean that is

(01:53):
kind of elite.
I mean, if you look at theexpensive wines, they'll usually
have a vineyard named there orwhatever.
And if you look at value pricewines, it's almost never there
on a label like that.
It might be in their tastingnotes that they got a single
vineyard wine or whatever.
This is a high-end, oh and.
And duck horns of chardonnaysfrom this vineyard are in the 65

(02:18):
dollar range.
At least they list for 65.
I don't know if people pay thatmuch, but it's not 9.99.
Um.
So where do these wines comefrom?
And here is a little bit, andI'm not sure I don't know the
details.
Platter Wine Partners.
It says Ashford Court ventedand bottled it on the back label

(02:40):
.
Vented and bottled just meansthey bottled it.
What happened to it before theyvented and bottled it?
I don't know.
And Ashford Court is part ofPlatter Wine Partners, which is
a large wine company inCalifornia.
I think they're based in Napa,but they control 20,000 acres of
vines.
They're no small wine company.

(03:01):
But how they got this wine orwhat the details are, did they
always have a contract withKushka Hills Vineyard and
something fell through so theymade it for Trader Joe's.
I don't know, but it's a.
But Platyca, platy Partners isa.

(03:23):
They do a couple of the betterTrader Joe's wines too the
Cotillion and a couple of otherones.
I'm going to take a sip.
Other ones, let's take a sip.
This is a medium to full bodybut I think there's some oak,

(03:43):
because I'm getting some vanilla, but it's not over oak.
It's not one of those kinds ofwines.
It's got length that lingersfor a while.
It's got lemon and apple andmaybe anju pear one of those
pears that aren't overly juicypeaches, tropical fruit I'm
getting a little bit of likecoconut milk type thing going on

(04:03):
, like white fleshed stone fruit, maybe like a nectarine, maybe
a hint of a tangerine or bloodorange, one of those things,
just to hit a little bit of thatin there.
It's got a lot of flavor andit's decently complex and as a

(04:27):
finish it lingers, which are allgood things for a well any wine
actually, but for a $9.99Chardonnay.
So these grapes from thisvineyard were never made to be
sold for $10.
And in the last year well, 2024was a bad year in wine.

(04:49):
There was a downturn that wasdown as much and maybe more as
10% in some places, andcontracts and vineyards people
who are planning on expandingtheir line decided against it.
People are coming up with newbrands.
Didn't come up with new brands.
If you notice, there's not alot of new wines.
There might be the tried andtrue wines are still there, but

(05:11):
new wines not.
Might be the tried and truerinds are still there, but new
wines not so much, which is kindof like Trader Joe's.
They have to walk the linebecause if they do something new
, it better be a bargain.
It better be some peopletalking about it because people
aren't drinking as much.
So they've got to be careful.
It's a tightrope they'rewalking, but I think this is a

(05:32):
pretty good tightrope.
I also saw a Rutherford Napa for$20, which is going to be
something that.
Where did that come from?
So I'll look into that too.
So this is a really niceChardonnay.
It's in time for the holidays.
Easter Chardonnay does wellwith the meal.
This is a tasty one with goodacidity.

(05:52):
It's well made Plata Partners.
If Plata Partners did more thanjust bottle it, they know what
they're doing.
Their winemaker is actuallypretty good, so there's nothing.
This is a wine that is abargain Ten bucks for a Canaros
single vineyard.

(06:13):
Fancy Winery owns the vineyard,so they don't play games with
their vineyards.
This is all good stuff.
I'm taking the last sip here.
So there you go.
The Trader Joe's Reserve,uchica Hills Vineyard.
Uchicuchi Hills.

(06:33):
Canaros Napa Chardonnay 2023.
Buy itader Joe's Reserve,uchica Hills Vineyard.
Uchicuchi Hills.
Canaro's Napa Chardonnay 2023.
Buy it.
It's a bargain.
There's no reason not to.
I've got a French BurgundyPinot coming up in a couple of
days.
So there you go.
Stay safe and warm and coolWeird out there, and I'll be
talking to everybody in a coupleof days.
Adios, keep it cheap.
This is Domain Day for CheapWine Finder.

(06:54):
Bye-bye.